This was not going to plan, Eoni thought irritably.  She tried to gauge the distance to the group in the tower.  The hobgoblin archers had height and cover but they lacked mobility.

"Sit tight," Eoni whispered.  "Let's see what they do.  We'll wait for Taerix to catch up, then decide."

Save for Taerix and perhaps Sarah, the adventurers managed to sneak no closer than perhaps 150 feet distant from the roadside blockade. Drawing any closer would have almost uncertainly drawn the hobgoblin's attention.

The halfling, perhaps the rogue, are able to sneak much closer to the outpost, perhaps 30 feet or so distant. That final 30 feet is cleared away of all brush.

The hobgoblins and ogre have no intention of leaving their post to investigate a smoking bush in the distance and seem content to watch for any activity behind the protection of their small fort.

Sarah hides in silence, scrutinizing the tower, and wonders . . .

[Private to DM Pawn: Setting aside the fact that the enemy is Ashley,  is it physically possible to climb into the tower]?

The palisade and tower are all constructed with cut timbers, none of which would be terribly difficult for Sarah to climb. The palisade is 10 feet tall and the central watchtower rises another 10 feet above the palisade wall.

Eoni observed that the tower was too strong to quickly chop down.  It had to be in order to support the gaggle now perched stubbornly on it's platform.

"The ogres probably have rocks or javelins to throw," Eoni surmised quietly.  "We'll lose a bow fight."

She tried to see if there were a way to run under the tower, forcing them to descend in order to reach them.

The tower has a commanding view of the surrounding area and any approach will be exposed and open to missile fire. There are no seams under the tower to slip under it. The only entrance to the palisade fort is through a closed timer gate on either side.

" If we could someone start a fire from inside the tower." Remarked Marklin, as he watched the fortification.

"Aldara," Eoni said, whispering to the sorceress, "can you block them from seeing us?  Give us a chance to reach that nearest gate and get it open?"

It had worked on the flying lion and the Sister hoped something similar could be used on the tower.

While she let Aldara gauge the distance, Eoni turned back to the others and whispered her new plan.

"If Aldara can mask our approach, I'll try and bind the ogres with Avandra's Grace just before she does.  I haven't tried it before but I feel it will work.

"Once we're at the gate, Marklin and Valthur can boost Sarah and Taerix over the gate to let us in.  Then we take the fight to them.  Try to get in close and break their archer's advantage.

"How does that sound?"

"We need to hold off those ogres," Valthur agrees. "It'll be a fair fight us against the hobgoblins, but if that pair of overgrown uglies get into the mix, it'll be curtains for us."

The dwarf thinks for a moment longer. "And if at least one of us can get into that tower and keep those two archers occupied, that will also help."

"I expect they have more than just the two bows up there," Eoni observed to the dwarf.  "They were able to drive back the Brindol Lions after all."

Aldara ponders potential illusions to weave.  "I can come up with something, no ifs, ands, or buts about it." She is one hundred percent confident.

"Probally can climb without help."

"Alright then," Eoni whispered, looking to the others and taking a deep breath.  "Aldara will mask us after my prayer.  Everyone make a run for the gate as soon as she's done."

She took another breath, focusing on the ogres in the tower as she began her quiet prayer.  "May Avandra's Grace hold our enemies fast so that we may free this highway and make safe it's travel once more." She held the symbol close to her chest and envisioned the ogres cast as if in stone, motionless and rooted to the tower.

[Private to DM Pawn: OOC:  Her first attempt at this prayer and it was a tough one.  Only 1 ogre needs to save vs Spells.
Eoni Daflin rolled 1 using 1d4 with rolls of 1.  Hold fast the ogres with Avandra's Grace.]

Taerix waits patiently for his part of the plan to arrive.

From behind the cover of stretch of stunted ground-mesquite, Eoni attempts to hold one of the ogre's within the distant stockade under Avandra's grace. But the ogre is having no part of it and shakes the compulsion from his mind as one might swat away a zealous gnat from their neck.

The ogre becomes quite agitated and shouts at others within the camp, [Language unknown: Redwerthoant ers sti p whebutiou er wirome. A onewillar un. Tedkoroul pl ng!]

Whatever the ogre just shouted, it seems to have agitated the others within the roadside blockade. The hobgoblins appear much more alert now and are guiding their attenion in all directions around their fort and are no longer content to simply watch brush burn in the distance.

"Probally should wait 'til later.  Probally."

"Blasted ogre. His skull is too thick for your magic to get in, Aldara." Valthur weighs their options. "Maybe it's time to charge in."

"Let Aldara cover our approach, first," Eoni cautioned Valthur.  She was disappointed her strength wasn't enough to hold the ogres, but adamant they should still proceed.

"We need to clear this barrier and we don't have time to waste.  Every day we delay, another town may be lost to that army.

"We stick to the plan.  I'll try to blind the ogres once we're in."

  "I be no coward, you know that, but this is not a god plan. I say we wait until night, slip past this place, deal with what we have to deal with in the north. When we return, we can wipe this place out. If we try and storm this place now, we have to move in the clear against those bloody Hobgoblin archers. If we survive the arrows, we still have to get inside the place and engage with steel against two Ogres and the Hobs. More then one of us is going to die in this fight. While we try and gain entrance, we suck arrows and maybe a rock from the two big uglies. "

Sarah looks sick to her stomach as Eoni outlines her plan.



Sarah turns from Marklin and looks at Eoni with a hopeful look in her eye.

Perhaps once Aldara brought her arts to bear, the others would gain confidence in the plan and realize they wouldn't be covering the distance in plain sight of the tower.

Valthur waits silently for the signal. He really hates waiting. Once the fighting begins, then what happens happens. The waiting, however, is almost more than he can stand.

Aldara weaves phantasmal forces and shapes those arcane energies into flames that break out within the roadside fort's far corner, engulfing the palisade in fiery blaze. The fire definitely gets the attentions of the fort's occupants. In response, the hobgoblins panic and fumble about, a few of them accidentally falling off the wall, while the big ogres shout at one another.

The resulting chaos does not reinforce these troops as being a well-disciplined force, rather, bumbling idiots that have been stationed at a remote outpost, rather than joining in the assault against the people of Elsir Vale. In any event, their attention directed toward the fire, the adventurers have an opportunity to advance on the palisade without fear of being spotted!

"Now!" Eoni hissed, seeing the guards in confusion.  It wasn't what she'd expected, but worked nonetheless.  She broke through the bushes and dashed for the wall.